Opening a Java file with Class Viewer

One of the features of my latest version of Class Viewer is the ability to open a local Java file. The way it works is that you have the packages for your classes setup in ClassViewerConfig.xml as usual, but the Local option should be set to "Yes", where the case does not matter, if you wish to open files rather than go to javadocs.

Now if you double-click on a method in the Results pane, or click on the Documents button, the application will go find the Java file, relying on your classpath so that must be set properly, look into the file to find the line number of the method, and call your preferred text editor.

If your preferred text editor takes a line number argument then it will get the call and you should have the file opened to that line number. Which I think is really cool. Well, it's fun to me.

If your text editor does NOT take a line number argument when called, Class Viewer will open up a pop-up window telling you the line number of the method. But you tell Class Viewer whether it does or not, in ClassViewerConfig.xml, so if you say it does take a line number then it will try that call with the line number.

If your text editor just opens the Java file and doesn't go to the method, you can assume it doesn't take the line number argument, or you do not have it set to take a line number argument in the ClassViewerConfig.xml file. Remember editing that file is easily done with a text editor, which is how I always do it.

The default text editor in ClassViewerConfig.xml is gedit as I think that one is well-known and it does take a line number in the argument! So I consider it a recommended text editor. It takes the line number with a parameter which is "+". So a call is like gedit ExampleFile.java +151 to go to line number 151 in ExampleFile.java as an example. That parameter is set in the config file as well.

Was almost tempted to write my own text editor to add this capability and realized that was silly, when Class Viewer could just call one. I think applications have great potential in calling other applications.

Class Viewer started in that direction by calling the browser anyway, and it's natural to continue down that path.

It's just so simple to let the application do it.


James Harris

What intellectual property?

One of the most contentious areas out there is the arena of intellectual property where I like to ponder my default position of simply giving ideas away. Of course the most visible is with my open source, but I do have other ideas I've simply put out there.

With one idea I DID first pursue a patent, and did so back in the 1990's without success. That idea was for computers to use a generated password that cycled on the basis of connection time. I came up with it for cellphones, so that they would generate a new password with each connection invisible to the user. The telecommunications industry wasn't interested in my idea and that was when it was switching to digital instead of analog (yup that wasn't that long ago), and moved to digital encryption.

I resurrected the idea a couple of times on this blog, with the most recent asking a simple question:

beyondmund.blogspot.com/2013/09/why-do-we-still-use-passwords.html

Giving that idea away makes sense to me but it's also just easier than worrying about how to make money with it.

Also I updated recently an idea I had for storing encrypted files as copy protection. I labeled that idea Digital Media Equipment Self-Encryption.

beyondmund.blogspot.com/2014/05/update-on-dmese.html

Maybe that one could have made money for me, but I don't care that much. There were multiple problems I wanted to solve where the biggest was being able to make a copy of a movie that I bought. I figure that issue is being resolved.

Problem solving to me is for a purpose. If I simply want something then the problem is still solved if putting out an idea satisfies that want. And I think that as we move forward into a world where people can easily share ideas globally that viewpoint will show up more and more.

Why? Well for me ideas are like my buddies. I have lots of them. They come and go easily, and we have good times. That enjoyment is meaningful in and of itself. Sure I'd like some money but don't need a lot. And am terrified of getting too rich! Yup, I am terrified of getting too rich. Show me a single extremely wealthy person on the planet who can just casually walk down any street in America to go to a coffee shop say, and sit and chat with strangers.

One of my all time favorite ideas can't be patented anyway, though I'm not certain it's completely mine! But I know I am someone who has publicized it, which is about science, one of my favorite subjects.

I put forward the following:

Science is the art of prediction.

If correct that could be one of the most powerful concepts in all of human history, and if science can be encapsulated so succinctly it could be one of the coolest things ever: the greatest driver of human progress also capable of easy description.

Yeah, but I don't get to decide any of the above.

I have an entire recent blog post dedicated to explaining for the people who DO help decide:

beyondmund.blogspot.com/2014/04/but-what-is-science.html

And maybe that helps explain the concept of giving away ideas even better than some recent attempts I have on this blog. Can you imagine? If just that little idea is accepted then it could change the lives of billions of people by helping science get done better. It does matter when we're talking about it, to actually know what it is!

But, my opinion actually doesn't matter at all. That is the great beauty of the web--the collective opinion of so many people that make it work.

That's how people find my content. Not because I'm out there yelling to please read my blog, but because others have found an interest here. If we have a simple way to talk about science then it's not just about me stating some simple sentence. And I really doubt I'm the first to think science is the art of prediction.

If that concept changes the world it will be because a LOT of people found it useful.

Like I said, with me problem solving is for a purpose. I'm practical. If it isn't useful, why try to use it?

And finding use in ideas is a group thing. Like, imagine an individual with an idea he LOVES and no one can convince him there's anything wrong with it, but no one else thinks it useful! He's in his own little happy world then, by himself.

To me ideas are like these little gems that you get excited about when you find them and show them to people. But these gems of knowledge reproduce endlessly and travel the world. It's so beautiful and it's all about people.

So this post is about showing some ideas I find fascinating. But others decide whether or not those ideas work for them.

So YOU are the difference that makes it matter. Your opinion and that of so many others, rules.

What I get to do is share. And it's so easy to share what you think is a gem of knowledge these days.

Our ideas fly around the world. Zipping through borders. Able to touch as many lives as need them.

So is the concept of intellectual property dead? I don't think it is, but I think it has to evolve as reality is I can toss something up on my blog and not worry a lot about legalese. What good is that legal framework for me anyway? Do you think anyone is really going to steal any of these ideas from me? Guess we'll see, eh? And for people not money motivated, it can be a lot more fun, as generating ideas is just a natural thing for them.

And the web seems designed for them.

Others may fear the web. They may get angry or frustrated at the idea of losing their ideas to it. Desperately worry about how to protect themselves from it.

But I feel like it's an ocean of information, where finally I am free, and so are my ideas.

Here on the web they can fly around the globe, and carry me and as many who wish.


James Harris

New release: Class Viewer 5.1

The new release for my Class Viewer is out, and I'm calling it version 5.1 where it implements changes I said I was considering in a prior post. One thing I decided to do is just leave the packagedirectory.xml name completely behind. So it doesn't check for it. But that's just a file name change to ClassViewerConfig.xml which is easy enough to do.

Did some code clean-up which included getting more generics implemented.

Kind of relieved to have the new release out. It was easy enough from a coding perspective but I'm more concerned about doing these things in a more sensible way so it felt different from when I cared less.

Thinking more about marketing by realizing it's not really about me so much as if I can bring value to people who like the application then that's a good thing. So I'm adjusting my perspective.

I think it's worth it to--I guess proper phrase is--upgrade, as you have a more sensible name for the xml configuration file. And you can keep your old packagedirectory.xml by just renaming it to ClassViewerConfig.xml so easy and that's what I did. And there is actually one less menu item on an already simple interface, and oh yeah, the web links are meant to be helpful so are now under "Help" on the top menu:

Class Viewer main website on SourceForge

Any comments appreciated. Putting this out during the summer helps make it less pressured so I have lots of time to make sure everything is working well before things get busy again come September.


James Harris

My take on coding

Writing code for computer systems is, yup, writing!

Turns out that writing well is kind of hard.

If you look around the globe at writers you have an interesting lot who help make things happen, and I think the idea that coding is writing is something that gets lost when people are trying to get more young people to write computer code.

And make no mistake, I think more young people should write! But it might actually help just as much to have them do creative writing, and here's why:

Think of a computer as a really big intelligent genie who will try to do ANYTHING you tell it.

All you have to do is instruct this wonderful genie, but even if you screw up, the genie will try it anyway!!!

So you need to tell a Great Story, where the genie will follow this story to a wonderful ever after--or at least, get your desired tasks done.

Coders have to have a certain attitude as you're in control.

Like writers in other formats you are THE BOSS, what you say goes, absolutely. It is an absolute dictatorship within your writing zone, or at least your blocks of code, but if you're supervised they'll review it. And if you write fiction your editor presumably--as I've never had anyone but me edit--will presumably muck up your work, shift things around and irritate you greatly.

So certain kinds of people are writers. I think more people should be writers. And the sooner they start the better.

But make no mistake, you want a kid to code she or he needs to learn to tell a story.

And learn to get that magical genie called the computer through to a fairy tale ending where users aren't pulling their hair out and screaming at their computer screens.

So it's actually kind of like: when you write computer code exceptionally well, then EVERYBODY gets to live happily ever after, or at least until they bump into the next thing that life throws at them.

Of course, trouble is, few coders write that well, so millions of people around the world are probably screaming at their computer screens RIGHT NOW because some coders couldn't get that computer genie to that fairy tale ending.

But life goes on. It's a beautiful thing.

And if you read this far--thank you for appreciating my writing! If you didn't appreciate it, what's wrong with you! You should have stopped sooner.

Writing is what I do. And I am a coder. Writing and I get along. It's like, WRITE, yeah. I write. And going to stop writing for this piece now.


James Harris

Possible Class Viewer changes

Been thinking about some changes to my Class Viewer app which I think of as more cosmetic which makes me wonder about doing them, but thought I'd talk the potential changes out ahead of time versus just doing them and seeing what happens.

One thing I'd like to do is get rid of the "Weblinks" drop-down from the top menu, and put all the links into the "Help" drop-down, which I think makes more sense. Also the one link not mine I might have in the help section is: docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial

That makes sense to me as it's a great tutorial on Java which I've used myself to refresh. And it would fit there I think.

Also I'd like to rename packagedirectory.xml to ClassViewerConfig.xml which I think makes more sense. I'm thinking about putting in more functionality into that xml file, and it's really a lot more than just a package directory at this point.

If I make that change would make it look for the old file if it didn't find the new one so it wouldn't force people who were long-time users to change the name.

Very speculative I've wondered about some kind of xml format for handing information to other applications.

But the reality of what I could do say, overnight if I felt like it, would be the first set of changes, removing "Weblinks", consolidating the useful current links under "Help" and adding the Java Tutorials link, and changing the name of packagedirectory.xml to ClassViewerConfig. xml are easy enough to do.

Oh yeah, I've realized it's easier to use this blog for help and instructions, which is actually kind of industry now. A blog post is easy to update, and can be as specialized as I need it, which is why there has been a shift in that direction.

Thing is, I can blog about my app when I feel like it, like in this post, or otherwise rant and rave about just about anything I want.

Blogs are just so freaking useful.

Oh yeah, any Class Viewer users who have any thoughts on these possible changes, please let me know.

Easiest way is to comment on this post.


James Harris